CND Press Roundup Monday 28th November 2022

• The head of Ukraine’s nuclear agency said Sunday that there were signs that Russian troops are preparing to leave the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant – held since March. Russia, meanwhile, has denied the claim.

• Julian Borger writes in The Guardian on the dangers posed by the recent shutdowns of Ukraine’s nuclear plants in the wake of concentrated Russian attempts to cripple Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

• The MoD has suggested that Russia is running low on its stocks of cruise missiles and is having to resort to using Cold War-era missiles that have been stripped of their nuclear warheads. It’s believed that the removed warheads are being replaced with ballast and used to distract Ukrainian air defences.

Trident

• Councillors in Rosyth have been given an update on the decommissioning of nuclear submarines that have been languishing in its dockyards for decades. Christine Bruce from the Rosyth Submarine Dismantling Project said most of the Low-Level Radioactive Waste (LLW) should be gone by the end of 2024. The MoD plans to scrap 27 Royal Navy subs in total and have Rosyth de-nuclearised by 2035.  

• The story of how Belgian greens blocked the transfer of nuclear technology needed for Britain’s nuclear submarines is now on the CND website.

Nuclear Test Veterans

• The Mirror has a dedicated website to the legacy of Britain’s nuclear weapons testing. It includes a timeline of significant milestones in British and global nuclear weapons development, international treaties and agreements, and articles on various aspects of the testing and its aftermath on veterans and their families.

AUKUS

• France is playing into the hands of China by attacking the AUKUS submarine deal, according to Peter Jennings, senior fellow at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. Writing in The Australian newspaper, Jennings accused French President Emmanuel Macron of spouting “diplomatic nonsense” that was a “gift to Beijing.”

Sixth-Gen Fighters

• The Japanese government is discussing a change to its military technology export rules, in preparation for a next-generation fighter jet collaboration with the UK. The pair hope to merge their respective F-X and Tempest programmes into a joint effort with Italy – but Japan’s current export rules means Britain couldn’t sell any warplanes developed with Tokyo.

• The FT also looks at the potential Japanese-UK fighter development deal – and how the project would mark a turn away by Tokyo from decades of military procurement from the US.  

• Nikkei Asia also has an unpaywalled feature on the deal.

North Korea

• Kim Jon Un’s daughter appeared with her father for the latest round of ICBM tests by North Korea – the second time she has done so. Pictured alongside her father and dozens of military officials and scientists, there is speculation that KIm Ju-ae is being positioned to take over from her father.

UK Nuclear Energy

• The head of the UK’s Nuclear Industry Association speaks to City AMon the need for more nuclear power in the country’s energy mix – arguing that SIzewell C isn’t enough.

• That’s as chemicals company Ineos reportedly held talks with Rolls Royce over using the latter’s knowledge of nuclear technology to develop a zero-carbon solution to its Grangemouth refinery in Scotland.

• Business Secretary Grant Shapps is finalising plans for the unveiling of Great British Nuclear – the quango that will be responsible for the rolling out of between 20 and 30 small modular nuclear reactors – the unproven technology being touted by Rolls Royce.

• The Telegraph reports on First Light Fusion’s plan for a £500 million plant that aims to make fuel for fusion reactions.

Nuclear Energy

• Indebted French nuclear firm EDF  announced that the 480-megawatt Saint-Nazaire Offshore Wind Farm is fully operational, with more projects to come online in the following years.

Fukushima

• China Daily runs an editorial on the Japanese plan to release millions of tonnes of radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea.

• That’s as journalists from the Global Think Agency investigated the Japanese plan. Read their findings here.

Mayors for Peace

• The Oldham Chronicle reports on a visit by Norwegian peace activist and cyclist Tore Naerland to a sixth form college. Naerland was accompanied by Richard Outram, Secretary of the UK and Ireland Chapter of Mayors for Peace.